fubar57
General
Sadly, three fatalities. Accidental ejection from Tu-22M3 bomber leaves 3 people dead
TU-22 Ejection Seat Mishap
- Thread starter fubar57
- Start date
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Thumpalumpacus
Major
Weird, and sad, that a zero-zero seat had those results.
In the USAF, us firefighters had a mnemonic: SET-5B. When we recovered an IFE, the initial steps were to secure Seat, EPU, Throttle, 5-point Belt. No one wanted to go for a ride. Seat was first for a reason.
In the USAF, us firefighters had a mnemonic: SET-5B. When we recovered an IFE, the initial steps were to secure Seat, EPU, Throttle, 5-point Belt. No one wanted to go for a ride. Seat was first for a reason.
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Wow, terrible and sad.
Very sad to hear 
MIflyer
1st Lieutenant
That was really too bad. The B-47, B-52, and F-104 have downward ejecting seats so that would be even worse for such a mishap.
I recall reading of an incident with a B-47 where the crew decided to eject, but the ejection seats did not work; they had to get out of their seats and go jump out a hatch in the bottom, The copilot saw the crew chief was riding with them and could not bail out. So he climbed back into his seat, pulled the control column back up out of the floor where it had retracted, and landed the airplane. I wondered what it would be like to be sitting there in an ejection seat that had been activated but had not fired. Imagine if it went off while you were climbing back in! After he landed the B-47 he was afraid it was on fire and would explode, so he got out and ran, forgetting all about the crew chief whose life he had saved.
A former F-106 pilot told me that his unit in Michigan had case where the pilot punched out due to inability to get the gear down, after which the F-106 made a perfect belly landing in the deep snow. Notified by a farmer, they found the airplane sitting there in the snow, all but undamaged, the engine running at idle and the radar still sweeping. They climbed into the cockpit, shut down the engine, picked up the airplane with a crane, replaced the canopy and ejection seat, and put it back into service.
I recall reading of an incident with a B-47 where the crew decided to eject, but the ejection seats did not work; they had to get out of their seats and go jump out a hatch in the bottom, The copilot saw the crew chief was riding with them and could not bail out. So he climbed back into his seat, pulled the control column back up out of the floor where it had retracted, and landed the airplane. I wondered what it would be like to be sitting there in an ejection seat that had been activated but had not fired. Imagine if it went off while you were climbing back in! After he landed the B-47 he was afraid it was on fire and would explode, so he got out and ran, forgetting all about the crew chief whose life he had saved.
A former F-106 pilot told me that his unit in Michigan had case where the pilot punched out due to inability to get the gear down, after which the F-106 made a perfect belly landing in the deep snow. Notified by a farmer, they found the airplane sitting there in the snow, all but undamaged, the engine running at idle and the radar still sweeping. They climbed into the cockpit, shut down the engine, picked up the airplane with a crane, replaced the canopy and ejection seat, and put it back into service.
Airframes
Benevolens Magister
The F-104 had downward ejection seat - it was changed to the "normal" upward-ejection type after fatalities, early in its service life, with Lockheed and Marin Baker seats, depending on country of service etc.
Thumpalumpacus
Major
As an aside, the Air Force showed us, in training, a film called "Ejection Decision". I'm unsure why they thought firefighters should watch it, but we did in one class. A short example of Sabre Dance at 2:31:
Joe Broady
Airman 1st Class
- 105
- May 30, 2019
Why couldn't the crew chief bail out? Of course procedures change from year to year, but the 1955 flight handbook indicates the "extra crew member" stands for preflight inspection with his equipment along with the regular crew. That equipment includes a chute.
Standard bail out sequence with an extra crew member aboard is for him to jump first. "Emergency escape through the entrance door is facilitated by provision for mechanically jettisoning of the door and ladder and extension of a bailout spoiler to deflect the airstream around the doorway." He can also go out through the bottom ejection hatch of the observer. Either way, the manual warns he must bail out before canopy jettison. If the pilot or copilot cannot eject, their preferred alternate egress route is through the entrance door.
Getting back to the Tu-22 mishap, the article says, "The Tu-22M is equipped with a KT-1M ejection system developed by the Tupolev Design Bureau. Given the nature of the incident, it is likely that the "forced ejection" procedure was triggered by the bomber's commander. If that feature is activated, a sequence begins where the operator is ejected first, then the navigator, then the first officer, and finally the commander of the aircraft."
I wonder if there was a switchology mistake. The B-1B also can automatically eject all crew seats. However, the feature can be disabled. At each of the four crew positions is an EJN MODE knob with AUTO and MAN settings. In AUTO, if the pilot or copilot is also in AUTO mode and ejects, you eject too. This overrides the ejection handle lock lever and safety pin on your seat! In MAN mode your seat won't go unless you pull the ejection handle. (The two rear seats don't have the power to trigger auto ejection of any other seat.)
The checklist calls for everyone to be in MAN mode until immediately before takeoff. Does the Tu-22 have a similar safety feature to disable forced ejection?
References:
T.O. 1B-47B-1, Flight Handbook USAF Series B-47B and B-47E Aircraft, 30 December 1955.
T.O. 1B-1B-1-1, Flight Manual USAF Series B-1B Aircraft, 10 July 1996.
MIflyer
1st Lieutenant
We lost a crewman when a B-52 lost all power on the way into Diego Garcia in 1991 during Desert Storm. I understand the seats malfunctioned due to age. In 1977 we lost the back seater in an F-105F when it was climbing out of Savannah; they had a massive fuel leak and punched out. The canopy seal for the back seat came loose and caught the back seater around his neck.
An F-100 pilot died when he tried to eject following an engine failure while taking off from Tinker AFB. He tried to eject but could not. Investigation showed that an AN flare tube fitting had not been drilled through .
An F-100 pilot died when he tried to eject following an engine failure while taking off from Tinker AFB. He tried to eject but could not. Investigation showed that an AN flare tube fitting had not been drilled through .
vikingBerserker
Lieutenant General
The article states the Tu-22M is equipped with zero-zero seat, but then states it did not have enough height for the parachute to open??
MIflyer
1st Lieutenant
The Cirrus SR-22 has an airframe parachute, but at 1000 ft AGL you are probably too low, and if you are in a spin you are definitely too low.
So basically at the time when you need it the most it won't do you any good, and that includes being at pattern altitude. If you are in nice stable flight at, say, 2000 ft AGL, the chute should work. Of course, why would you deploy it then?
So basically at the time when you need it the most it won't do you any good, and that includes being at pattern altitude. If you are in nice stable flight at, say, 2000 ft AGL, the chute should work. Of course, why would you deploy it then?
cvairwerks
Staff Sergeant
CAPS has a spin minimum altitude of 1000 AGL, while for normal ops, it's only 400 AGL.
Joe Broady
Airman 1st Class
- 105
- May 30, 2019
If this supposed preliminary report excerpt on the Aviationist site is to be believed, the escape system needs 130 km/h minimum for successful ejection.
Tu-22 mishap report
J
Joe Broady
As I understand it, a zero-zero ejection seat is usable from zero altitude and zero speed. If so, that's not a zero-zero chute despite what they say lol
As I understand it, a zero-zero ejection seat is usable from zero altitude and zero speed. If so, that's not a zero-zero chute despite what they say lol
cvairwerks
Staff Sergeant
Did a little hopping around looking for data on the KT-1M seat... it's apparently not a zero-zero seat. From what I found, at under 200 feet AGL, it requires 80 knots for man-seat separation and full chute deployment. From the ifo I could find, the KT is the same as a KM-1M from the MiG 21, but configured for bomber installation.
Another interesting bit, is that the crew command seat has the ability to forceably initiate the other 3 seats, while not firing itself. All it takes is flipping up a single guard and cycling a switch.
Another interesting bit, is that the crew command seat has the ability to forceably initiate the other 3 seats, while not firing itself. All it takes is flipping up a single guard and cycling a switch.
vikingBerserker
Lieutenant General
Man, I wish I could get that option for my car!
